Travis Kuualiialoha Browne (born July 17, 1982) is an American retired

mixed martial artist Mixed martial arts (MMA), sometimes referred to as cage fighting, no holds barred (NHB), and ultimate fighting, and originally referred to as Vale Tudo is a full-contact combat sport based on striking, grappling and ground fighting, incorpo ...

who last competed as a

Heavyweight Heavyweight is a weight class in combat sports and professional wrestling. Boxing Professional Boxers who weigh over are considered heavyweights by 3 of the 4 major professional boxing organizations: the International Boxing Federation, the W ...

in the

Ultimate Fighting Championship The Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) is an American mixed martial arts (MMA) promotion company based in Las Vegas, Nevada. It is owned and operated by Zuffa, a wholly owned subsidiary of Endeavor Group Holdings. It is the largest MMA ...

(UFC).

Background

Browne was born in Hawaii to a father with Hawaiian

Native Hawaiian Native Hawaiians (also known as Indigenous Hawaiians, Kānaka Maoli, Aboriginal Hawaiians, First Hawaiians, or simply Hawaiians) ( haw, kānaka, , , and ), are the indigenous ethnic group of Polynesian people of the Hawaiian Islands. Hawai ...

ancestry and a European American mother. He played basketball and won the 2000 Coastal North League Player of the Year while attending high school in

San Diego San Diego ( , ; ) is a city on the Pacific Ocean coast of Southern California located immediately adjacent to the Mexico–United States border. With a 2020 population of 1,386,932, it is the eighth most populous city in the United States ...

and then continued his career at

Palomar College Palomar College is a public community college in San Diego County, California. The main campus is in San Marcos and three centers and four education sites are located elsewhere throughout north San Diego County. The largest of these by student ...

. Browne had no martial arts experience before being introduced to

Brazilian jiu-jitsu Brazilian jiu-jitsu (BJJ; pt, jiu-jitsu brasileiro ) is a self-defence martial art and combat sport based on grappling, ground fighting ( ne-waza) and submission holds. BJJ focuses on the skill of taking an opponent to the ground, control ...

at the age of 26. Browne also began training in

boxing Boxing (also known as "Western boxing" or "pugilism") is a combat sport in which two people, usually wearing protective gloves and other protective equipment such as hand wraps and mouthguards, throw punches at each other for a predetermine ...

and had his first professional fight less than a year later.

Mixed martial arts career

Browne began his professional MMA career in 2009, fighting in smaller organizations such as

Bellator Fighting Championships Bellator MMA (formerly Bellator Fighting Championships) is an American mixed martial arts promotion founded in 2008 and based in Santa Monica, California, owned and operated as a subsidiary of television and media conglomerate Paramount Global. ...

, Gladiator Challenge, and

King of the Cage King of the Cage (KOTC) is a mixed martial arts (MMA) promotion based in Southern California, United States. History KOTC was founded in 1998 by Terry Trebilcock. KOTC features mostly amateur as well as up and coming MMA stars and former mainstr ...

. He quickly amassed an undefeated winning streak of 9–0.

Ultimate Fighting Championship

In March 2010, Browne signed with the UFC. He made his debut at The Ultimate Fighter: Team Liddell vs. Team Ortiz Finale against James McSweeney. Browne won the fight via TKO at 4:32 of the first round. Browne fought UFC veteran Cheick Kongo at UFC 120. The fight was even heading into the third round, with Browne winning the first round on the judge's scorecards and Kongo taking the second. In the third and final round, Kongo was penalized with a point deduction for repeatedly grabbing and holding Browne's shorts and the fight, therefore, resulted in a somewhat controversial draw. Browne faced

Stefan Struve Stefan Jaimy Struve (; born February 18, 1988) is a Dutch former mixed martial artist who competed as a heavyweight in the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). At , he is the tallest fighter in the history of the UFC. Background Growing up in t ...

on May 28, 2011, at

UFC 130 ''UFC 130: Rampage vs. Hamill'' was a mixed martial arts event held by the Ultimate Fighting Championship on May 28, 2011 at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada. Background This event was to be the third meeting between Frankie Edga ...

. He won the fight via superman punch KO in the first round, earning a "Knockout of the Night" bonus in the process. Browne faced

Rob Broughton Rob Broughton (born 3 March 1983) is an English former mixed martial artist who competed in the heavyweight division. A professional competitor between 2004 and 2015, Broughton is a former British Cage Rage heavyweight champion and has also co ...

on September 24, 2011, at

UFC 135 ''UFC 135: Jones vs. Rampage'' was a mixed martial arts event held by the Ultimate Fighting Championship on September 24, 2011 at the Pepsi Center in Denver, Colorado Colorado (, other variants) is a state in the Mountain states, Mountai ...

where he won by unanimous decision (30–27, 30–27, and 30–27). Browne agreed to fight UFC newcomer Chad Griggs on April 21, 2012, at

UFC 145 ''UFC 145: Jones vs. Evans'' was a mixed martial arts event held by the Ultimate Fighting Championship. It was the 9th UFC event of the year, and took place on April 21, 2012 at the Philips Arena in Atlanta, Georgia. Background The headline fight ...

. He defeated Griggs by submission due to an arm-triangle choke in the first round. The performance earned Browne ''Submission of the Night'' honors. Browne was expected to fight Ben Rothwell at UFC on FOX 4 on August 4, 2012, in Los Angeles, California. However, Rothwell was forced to pull out of the fight due to injury. Browne faced Antônio Silva on October 5, 2012, at the main event of UFC on FX 5. Browne came out aggressive, showing a variety of striking techniques. Browne strained his left hamstring throwing a flashy kick. Silva was able to capitalize, backing Browne up, landing a big right hand, and finishing with punches from the top, giving Browne his first professional loss. A camera crew from

Vice Media Vice Media Group LLC is an American-Canadian digital media and broadcasting company. , the Vice Media Group included five main business areas: VICE.com (digital content); VICE STUDIOS (film and TV production) VICE TV (also known as VICELAND); ...

followed and interviewed Browne before and after the fight with Silva. Browne faced

Gabriel Gonzaga Gabriel Gonzaga Santos Nogueira (; born 18 May 1979) is a Brazilian mixed martial artist, who competed in the Heavyweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship. He is perhaps best known for his upset head-kick knockout of ...

on April 13, 2013, at The Ultimate Fighter 17 Finale. Browne defeated Gonzaga via first-round knockout by elbows to the side of the head. The performance earned Browne ''Knockout of the Night'' honors. The win however was not without controversy as Browne not only held on to the fence to defend a takedown but also connected with illegal 12–6 elbows to the back of the head to Gonzaga. Gonzaga's appeal to the Nevada State Athletic Commission to overturn the fight to a no-contest was denied. Browne faced

Alistair Overeem Alistair Cees Overeem (born 17 May 1980) is a Dutch professional heavyweight mixed martial artist and kickboxer, currently competing in the heavyweight division of Glory. He is a former Strikeforce Heavyweight Champion, Dream Heavyweight Cha ...

on August 17, 2013, at

UFC Fight Night 26 ''UFC Fight Night: Shogun vs. Sonnen'' (also known as ''UFC Fight Night 26'') was a mixed martial arts event held on August 17, 2013, at the TD Garden in Boston. Background The event was the first UFC event broadcast on Fox Sports 1. The main ev ...

. After surviving Overeem's initial flurry, Browne won via knockout due to a front kick and punches in the first round. The impressive knockout also earned Browne his third ''Knockout of the Night'' bonus award. Browne faced

Josh Barnett Joshua Lawrence Barnett (born November 10, 1977) is an American mixed martial artist, submission grappler, professional wrestler and color commentator currently signed to Bellator MMA, where he competes in their Heavyweight division. Barnet ...

on December 28, 2013, at

UFC 168 ''UFC 168: Weidman vs. Silva 2'' was a mixed martial arts event held on December 28, 2013, at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada. Background The event was headlined by a UFC Middleweight Championship rematch between current champion ...

. Browne won exactly a minute into the match via knockout due to elbows while Barnett was attempting a takedown. This earned him the ''Knockout of the Night'' bonus for his third straight fight. Browne faced

Fabrício Werdum Fabrício Werdum (; born 30 July 1977) is a Brazilian mixed martial artist and former UFC Heavyweight Champion who competes in the Heavyweight division. He is also a 4-time Brazilian jiu-jitsu world champion, a two-time Abu Dhabi Combat Club W ...

on April 19, 2014, at UFC on Fox 11. Despite being a betting favorite with better considered striking, Browne was outstruck for nearly all five rounds after scoring an early knockdown on Werdum in the first round. Browne also said that he suffered a broken hand, ribs and dislocated his foot at some point during the fight. He lost the fight via unanimous decision (49–46, 50–45, and 50–45). Browne faced Brendan Schaub on December 6, 2014, at UFC 181. He won the fight via TKO in the first round. Browne faced

Andrei Arlovski Andrei Arlovski (born 4 February 1979) is a Belarusian-American professional mixed martial artist, actor and former UFC Heavyweight Champion. He currently competes in the Heavyweight division for the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) and h ...

on May 23, 2015, at UFC 187. Despite being a heavy betting favorite, Browne lost the fight via TKO in the first round. After a back and forth round where both fighters were dropped, many instantly consider it one of the best one round fights in UFC history. The bout earned Browne his first ''Fight of the Night'' bonus award. Browne faced

Matt Mitrione Matthew Steven Mitrione (born July 15, 1978) is an American mixed martial artist and former American football player, who competed for both the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC), and most recently for Bellator MMA. Prior to embarking on an MM ...

on January 17, 2016, at UFC Fight Night 81. He won the fight via TKO in the third round. However, this win was controversial, as Mitrione suffered multiple eye pokes from Browne throughout the fight, with Browne even targeting the eye with jabs and punches, causing Mitrione to have an injured eye. Browne next faced

Cain Velasquez Caín Ramirez Velasquez (born July 28, 1982) is an American professional wrestler and retired mixed martial artist, currently appearing for Lucha Libre AAA Worldwide (AAA). He is widely known for his time in the Ultimate Fighting Championship, ...

on July 9, 2016, at UFC 200. He lost the fight via TKO in the closing seconds of the first round. Browne faced

in a rematch on September 10, 2016, at UFC 203. He lost the fight by unanimous decision (29–28, 29–27, and 30–27). Browne faced

Derrick Lewis Derrick James Lewis (born February 7, 1985) is an American professional mixed martial artist. He currently competes in the Heavyweight division in the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC), where he currently holds the record for most knockouts i ...

on February 19, 2017, in the main event at UFC Fight Night 105 in

Halifax, Nova Scotia Halifax is the capital and largest municipality of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Nova Scotia, and the largest municipality in Atlantic Canada. As of the 2021 Census, the municipal population was 439,819, with 348 ...

. Despite hurting Lewis with body strikes in the first round, he lost the fight via knockout in the second round. Both participants were awarded ''Fight of the Night'' for their performance. Browne faced

Alexey Oleynik Aleksei Alexeyevich Oleinik (born June 25, 1977, as Oleksíy Oleksíyovych Olíynyk) is a Russian mixed martial artist and combat sambo fighter who fought for the Ultimate Fighting Championship, competing in their heavyweight division. He b ...

on July 8, 2017, at UFC 213. He lost the fight via submission in the second round. This result prompted UFC president Dana White to say "I think that Travis should retire." It was his last fight to date.

Personal life

Browne has two sons from his first marriage to Erin – Kaleo and Keawe. Browne married Jenna Renee Webb in January 2015. In July 2015, Webb posted Instagram photos showing multiple bruises on her body allegedly caused by Browne and claimed he beat her. As a result, Browne was removed from the UFC's International Fight Week events pending an investigation. On August 28, 2015, the UFC reinstated Browne when their independent investigation found "inconclusive evidence" in the domestic violence inquiry. Following the report, Webb publicly stated she is considering pressing charges. Browne and Webb divorced on February 21, 2016. He has been in a relationship with former Women's Bantamweight champion

Ronda Rousey Ronda Jean Rousey (; born February 1, 1987) is an American professional wrestler, actress, former judoka and mixed martial artist. She is currently signed to WWE, where she performs on the SmackDown brand and is the current SmackDown Women� ...

since 2015. On April 20, 2017, Browne and Rousey announced their engagement. Browne proposed to Rousey under a waterfall in New Zealand. The two were married on August 26, 2017, in Hawaii., On April 21, 2021, Browne and Rousey announced on her official YouTube channel that she was four months pregnant. On June 29, 2021, Browne and Rousey announced that they were expecting a girl. On September 27, 2021, Rousey and Browne announced the birth of their daughter La’akea Makalapuaokalanipō Browne. Browne's moniker, '

Hapa Hapa is a Hawaiian word for someone of multiracial ancestry. In Hawaii, the word refers to any person of mixed ethnic heritage, regardless of the specific mixture.: "Thus, for locals in Hawai’i, both hapa or hapa haole are used to depict p ...

', is derived from the term in Hawaii for a person who is mixed blood. Browne attended the 2019 WWE Hall Of Fame ceremony with his wife,

, who was working with the

WWE World Wrestling Entertainment, Inc., d/b/a as WWE, is an American professional wrestling promotion. A global integrated media and entertainment company, WWE has also branched out into other fields, including film, American football, and var ...

. During the event, a fan rushed the stage and tackled

Bret Hart Bret Hart (born July 2, 1957) is a Canadian-American retired professional wrestler, currently signed to WWE under a legend's contract. A member of the Hart wrestling family and a second-generation wrestler, he has an amateur wrestling back ...

, who was being inducted as a member of the tag team

The Hart Foundation The Hart Foundation is the name of several derivative tag teams and stables composed primarily of members and close friends of the Hart wrestling family. The name originated in the World Wrestling Federation in 1985 with the original Hart Foundat ...

. Browne was one of several men who ran onto the stage to help subdue the man. Hart later thanked Browne the next night during

WrestleMania 35 WrestleMania 35 was the 35th annual WrestleMania professional wrestling pay-per-view and livestreaming event produced by WWE. It was held for wrestlers from the promotion's Raw, SmackDown, and 205 Live brand divisions. The event took place ...

Championships and accomplishments

** Fight of the Night (Two times) vs.

and

** Knockout of the Night (Four times) vs.

and

** Submission of the Night (One time) vs. Chad Griggs * Gladiator Challenge ** Interim Gladiator Challenge Heavyweight Championship (One time) * Victory Fighting Championship ** VFC Heavyweight Championship (One time) *

World MMA Awards The World MMA Awards are awards presented by ''Fighters Only'' magazine to honor exceptional performance in various aspects of mixed martial arts. Winners are presented with the ''Fighters Only silver statuette''. The World MMA Awards are divided ...

** 2013 Breakthrough Fighter of the Year ** 2013 Comeback of the Year vs.

MMAJunkie.com MMA Junkie is a news website that covers the sport of mixed martial arts (MMA). It was founded in 2006, and is owned by Gannett Company since 2011. The site and its content have been featured in ''Time'' magazine'', ''ESPN The Magazine'', ''The N ...

** 2015 May Fight of the Month vs.

Mixed martial arts record

, - , Loss , align=center, 18–7–1 ,

, Submission (rear-naked choke) , UFC 213 , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 3:44 ,

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, United States , , - , Loss , align=center, 18–6–1 ,

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, Canada , , - , Loss , align=center, ,

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Ohio Ohio () is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. Of the List of states and territories of the United States, fifty U.S. states, it is the List of U.S. states and territories by area, 34th-l ...

, United States , , - , Loss , align=center, 18–4–1 ,

, TKO (punches) , UFC 200 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 4:57 ,

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 18–3–1 ,

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Massachusetts Massachusetts (Massachusett language, Massachusett: ''Muhsachuweesut assachusett writing systems, məhswatʃəwiːsət'' English: , ), officially the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, is the most populous U.S. state, state in the New England ...

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, TKO (punches) , UFC 187 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 4:41 ,

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 17–2–1 , Brendan Schaub , TKO (punches) , UFC 181 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 4:50 ,

, United States , , - , Loss , align=center, 16–2–1 ,

, Decision (unanimous) , UFC on Fox: Werdum vs. Browne , , align=center, 5 , align=center, 5:00 , Orlando, Florida, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 16–1–1 ,

, KO (elbows) ,

, , align=center, 1 , align=center, 1:00 ,

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 15–1–1 ,

, KO (front kick and punches) , UFC Fight Night: Shogun vs. Sonnen , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 4:08 ,

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 14–1–1 ,

, KO (elbows) , The Ultimate Fighter: Team Jones vs. Team Sonnen Finale , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 1:11 ,

Las Vegas Las Vegas (; Spanish language, Spanish for "The Meadows"), often known simply as Vegas, is the List of United States cities by population, 25th-most populous city in the United States, the most populous city in the U.S. state, state of Neva ...

Nevada Nevada ( ; ) is a state in the Western region of the United States. It is bordered by Oregon to the northwest, Idaho to the northeast, California to the west, Arizona to the southeast, and Utah to the east. Nevada is the 7th-most extensive, ...

, United States , , - , Loss , align=center, 13–1–1 , Antônio Silva , TKO (punches) , UFC on FX: Browne vs. Bigfoot , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 3:27 ,

Minneapolis Minneapolis () is the largest city in Minnesota, United States, and the county seat of Hennepin County. The city is abundant in water, with list of lakes in Minneapolis, thirteen lakes, wetlands, the Mississippi River, creeks and waterfalls. ...

Minnesota Minnesota () is a state in the upper midwestern region of the United States. It is the 12th largest U.S. state in area and the List of U.S. states and territories by population, 22nd most populous, with over 5.75 million residents. Minne ...

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 13–0–1 , Chad Griggs , Submission (arm-triangle choke) ,

, , align=center, 1 , align=center, 2:29 ,

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, Decision (unanimous) ,

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, England , , - , Win , align=center, 10–0 , James McSweeney , TKO (punches) , The Ultimate Fighter: Team Liddell vs. Team Ortiz Finale , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 4:32 ,

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References

External links

Travis Browne's Official MMA Record
* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Browne, Travis 1982 births Living people People from Oahu American male mixed martial artists American practitioners of Brazilian jiu-jitsu People awarded a black belt in Brazilian jiu-jitsu Heavyweight mixed martial artists Mixed martial artists utilizing boxing Mixed martial artists utilizing Brazilian jiu-jitsu Mixed martial artists from Hawaii People from Honolulu County, Hawaii Boxers from Hawaii American people of Native Hawaiian descent Native Hawaiian sportspeople Native Hawaiian people American male boxers Ultimate Fighting Championship male fighters